Vagabond Fitness: A Field Manual for Travelers

Steve Pitt is a Toronto-based freelance writer and an award-winning journalist. He has written many young adult and children's books, including Day of the Flying Fox: The True Story of World War II Pilot Charley Fox.

When Hank Schachte was 19, he suffered a back injury. To keep in shape,
Schachte experimented with yoga, diets, and exercise routines that he
had to juggle against a busy writing career and lots of travel. Now 56,
Schachte is ready to share his secrets. The result is Vagabond Fitness,
a regimen designed for people who have little time and no access to
exercise equipment.

Schachte’s program involves low-impact stretching, isometrics, and
floor exercises (e.g., leg raises). The routine is broken into three
short segments that are evenly spaced throughout

the day. Most of the routine can be completed by even the starchiest
couch potato on the first day.

The reader should be warned that Schachte has some fairly unorthodox
views on most subjects. He is a vegetarian and anti-leather activist
(one hopes that the rawhide suitcase featured on book’s front cover is
imitation). He also shuns soap, shampoo, and dishwashing detergent. He
advises people to wear only loose-fitting clothing and to avoid the
color black.

Schachte’s small spiral-bound book fits easily in any suitcase, pack,
or jacket pocket. It is fun to read and costs less than a set of
designer sweat socks. Although he often sounds a little peculiar, there
always seems to be some method to his madness.